Discovery BoxPsalms 18:29-50
Context18:29 Indeed, 1 with your help 2 I can charge against 3 an army; 4
by my God’s power 5 I can jump over a wall. 6
18:30 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; 7
the Lord’s promise 8 is reliable; 9
he is a shield to all who take shelter 10 in him.
18:31 Indeed, 11 who is God besides the Lord?
Who is a protector 12 besides our God? 13
18:32 The one true God 14 gives 15 me strength; 16
he removes 17 the obstacles in my way. 18
18:33 He gives me the agility of a deer; 19
he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain. 20
18:34 He trains my hands for battle; 21
my arms can bend even the strongest bow. 22
18:35 You give me your protective shield; 23
your right hand supports me; 24
your willingness to help 25 enables me to prevail. 26
my feet 28 do not slip.
18:37 I chase my enemies and catch 29 them;
I do not turn back until I wipe them out.
18:38 I beat them 30 to death; 31
they fall at my feet. 32
18:39 You give me strength 33 for battle;
you make my foes kneel before me. 34
18:40 You make my enemies retreat; 35
I destroy those who hate me. 36
18:41 They cry out, but there is no one to help them; 37
they cry out to the Lord, 38 but he does not answer them.
18:42 I grind them as fine windblown dust; 39
I beat them underfoot 40 like clay 41 in the streets.
18:43 You rescue me from a hostile army; 42
you make me 43 a leader of nations;
people over whom I had no authority are now my subjects. 44
18:44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. 45
Foreigners are powerless 46 before me;
18:45 foreigners lose their courage; 47
they shake with fear 48 as they leave 49 their strongholds. 50
My protector 52 is praiseworthy! 53
The God who delivers me 54 is exalted as king! 55
18:47 The one true God 56 completely vindicates me; 57
he makes nations submit to me. 58
18:48 He delivers me 59 from my enemies;
you snatch me away 60 from those who attack me; 61
you rescue me from violent men.
18:49 So I will give you thanks before the nations, 62 O Lord!
I will sing praises to you! 63
18:50 He 64 gives his chosen king magnificent victories; 65
[18:29] 1 tn Or “for.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is asseverative here.
[18:29] 3 tn Heb “I will run.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 29 indicate the subject’s potential or capacity to perform an action. Though one might expect a preposition to follow the verb here, this need not be the case with the verb רוּץ (ruts; see 1 Sam 17:22). Some emend the Qal to a Hiphil form of the verb and translate, “I put to flight [Heb “cause to run”] an army.”
[18:29] 4 tn More specifically, the noun גְּדוּד (gÿdud) refers to a raiding party or to a contingent of troops.
[18:29] 5 tn Heb “and by my God.”
[18:29] 6 sn I can jump over a wall. The psalmist uses hyperbole to emphasize his God-given military superiority.
[18:30] 7 tn Heb “[As for] the God, his way is blameless.” The term הָאֵל (ha’el, “the God”) stands as a nominative (or genitive) absolute in apposition to the resumptive pronominal suffix on “way.” The prefixed article emphasizes his distinctiveness as the one true God (cf. Deut 33:26). God’s “way” in this context refers to his protective and salvific acts in fulfillment of his promise (see also Deut 32:4; Pss 67:2; 77:13 [note vv. 11-12, 14]; 103:7; 138:5; 145:17).
[18:30] 8 sn The
[18:30] 9 tn Heb “the word of the
[18:30] 10 sn Take shelter. See the note on the word “shelter” in v. 2.
[18:31] 14 tn Heb “rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor of divine protection. See v. 2, where the Hebrew term צוּר (tsur) is translated “rocky summit.”
[18:31] 15 tn The rhetorical questions anticipate the answer, “No one.” In this way the psalmist indicates that the
[18:32] 19 tn Heb “the God.” The prefixed article emphasizes the
[18:32] 20 tn Heb “is the one who clothes.” For similar language see 1 Sam 2:4; Pss 65:6; 93:1. The psalmist employs a generalizing hymnic style in vv. 32-34; he uses participles in vv. 32a, 33a, and 34a to describe what God characteristically does on his behalf.
[18:32] 21 tn 2 Sam 22:33 reads, “the God is my strong refuge.”
[18:32] 22 tn The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries along the generalizing force of the preceding participle.
[18:32] 23 tn Heb “he made my path smooth.” The Hebrew term תָּמִים (tamim, “smooth”) usually carries a moral or ethical connotation, “blameless, innocent.” However, in Ps 18:33 it refers to a pathway free of obstacles. The reality underlying the metaphor is the psalmist’s ability to charge into battle without tripping (see vv. 33, 36).
[18:33] 25 tn Heb “[the one who] makes my feet like [those of ] a deer.”
[18:33] 26 tn Heb “and on my high places he makes me walk.” The imperfect verbal form emphasizes God’s characteristic provision. The psalmist compares his agility in battle to the ability of a deer to negotiate rugged, high terrain without falling or being injured.
[18:34] 31 sn He trains my hands. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement. Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.
[18:34] 32 tn Heb “and a bow of bronze is bent by my arms”; or “my arms bend a bow of bronze.” The verb נָחַת (nakhat) apparently means “pull back, bend” here (see HALOT 692 s.v. נחת). The third feminine singular verbal form appears to agree with the feminine singular noun קֶשֶׁת (qeshet, “bow”). In this case the verb must be taken as Niphal (passive). However, it is possible that “my arms” is the subject of the verb and “bow” the object. In this case the verb is Piel (active). For other examples of a feminine singular verb being construed with a plural noun, see GKC 464 §145.k.
[18:35] 37 tn Heb “and you give to me the shield of your deliverance.”
[18:35] 38 tc 2 Sam 22:36 omits this line, perhaps due to homoioarcton. A scribe’s eye may have jumped from the vav (ו) prefixed to “your right hand” to the vav prefixed to the following “and your answer,” causing the copyist to omit by accident the intervening words (“your right hand supports me and”).
[18:35] 39 tn The MT of Ps 18:35 appears to read, “your condescension,” apparently referring to God’s willingness to intervene (cf. NIV “you stoop down”). However, the noun עֲנָוָה (’anavah) elsewhere means “humility” and is used only here of God. The form עַנְוַתְךָ (’anvatÿkha) may be a fully written form of the suffixed infinitive construct of עָנָה (’anah, “to answer”; a defectively written form of the infinitive appears in 2 Sam 22:36). In this case the psalmist refers to God’s willingness to answer his prayer; one might translate, “your favorable response.”
[18:35] 40 tn Heb “makes me great.”
[18:36] 43 tn Heb “you make wide my step under me.” “Step” probably refers metonymically to the path upon which the psalmist walks. Another option is to translate, “you widen my stride.” This would suggest that God gives the psalmist the capacity to run quickly.
[18:36] 44 tn Heb “lower legs.” On the meaning of the Hebrew noun, which occurs only here, see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 112. A cognate Akkadian noun means “lower leg.”
[18:37] 49 tn 2 Sam 22:38 reads “destroy.”
[18:38] 55 tn Or “smash them.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “and I wiped them out and smashed them.”
[18:38] 56 tn Heb “until they are unable to rise.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “until they do not rise.”
[18:38] 57 sn They fall at my feet. For ancient Near Eastern parallels, see O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 294-97.
[18:39] 61 tn Heb “clothed me.” See v. 32.
[18:39] 62 tn Heb “you make those who rise against me kneel beneath me.”
[18:40] 67 tn Heb “and [as for] my enemies, you give to me [the] back [or “neck”].” The idiom “give [the] back” means “to cause [one] to turn the back and run away.” Cf. Exod 23:27.
[18:40] 68 sn Those who hate me. See v. 17, where it is the
[18:41] 73 tn Heb “but there is no deliverer.”
[18:41] 74 tn Heb “to the
[18:42] 79 tn Heb “I pulverize them like dust upon the face of the wind.” The phrase “upon the face of” here means “before.” 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “like dust of the earth.”
[18:42] 80 tc Ps 18:42 reads, “I empty them out” (Hiphil of ריק), while 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “I crush them, I stomp on them” (juxtaposing the synonyms דקק and רקע). It is likely that the latter is a conflation of variants. One, but not both, of the verbs in 2 Sam 22:43 is probably original; “empty out” does not form as good a parallel with “grind, pulverize” in the parallel line.
[18:43] 85 tn Heb “from the strivings of a people.” In this context the Hebrew term רִיב (riv, “striving”) probably has a militaristic sense (as in Judg 12:2; Isa 41:11), and עָם (’am, “people”) probably refers more specifically to an army (for other examples, see the verses listed in BDB 766 s.v. I עַם, עָם 2.d). Some understand the phrase as referring to attacks by the psalmist’s own countrymen, the “nation” being Israel. However, foreign enemies appear to be in view; note the reference to “nations” in the following line.
[18:43] 86 tn 2 Sam 22:44 reads, “you keep me.”
[18:43] 87 tn Heb “a people whom I did not know serve me.” In this context “know” (יָדַע, yada’) probably refers to formal recognition by treaty. People who were once not under the psalmist’s authority now willingly submit to his rulership to avoid being conquered militarily (see vv. 44-45). The language may recall the events recorded in 2 Sam 8:9-10 and 10:19.
[18:44] 91 tn Heb “at a report of an ear they submit to me.” The report of the psalmist’s exploits is so impressive that those who hear it submit to his rulership without putting up a fight.
[18:44] 92 tn For the meaning “be weak, powerless” for כָּחַשׁ (kakhash), see Ps 109:24. The next line (see v. 45a), in which “foreigners” are also mentioned, favors this interpretation. Another option is to translate “cower in fear” (see Deut 33:29; Pss 66:3; 81:15; cf. NIV “cringe”; NRSV “came cringing”).
[18:45] 97 tn Heb “wither, wear out.”
[18:45] 98 tn The meaning of חָרַג (kharag, “shake”) is established on the basis of cognates in Arabic and Aramaic. 2 Sam 22:46 reads חָגַר (khagar), which might mean here, “[they] come limping” (on the basis of a cognate in postbiblical Hebrew). The normal meaning for חָגַר (“gird”) makes little sense here.
[18:45] 100 tn Heb “their prisons.” The besieged cities of the foreigners are compared to prisons.
[18:46] 103 tn Elsewhere the construction חַי־יְהוָה (khay-yÿhvah) is used exclusively as an oath formula, “as surely as the
[18:46] 104 tn Heb “my rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor for protection. See similar phrases in vv. 2, 31.
[18:46] 105 tn Or “blessed [i.e., praised] be.”
[18:46] 106 tn Heb “the God of my deliverance.” 2 Sam 22:48 reads, “the God of the rocky cliff of my deliverance.”
[18:46] 107 tn The words “as king” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Elsewhere in the psalms the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”), when used of God, refers to his exalted position as king (Pss 99:2; 113:4; 138:6) and/or his self-revelation as king through his mighty deeds of deliverance (Pss 21:13; 46:10; 57:5, 11).
[18:47] 109 tn Heb “the God.” See v. 32.
[18:47] 110 tn Heb “is the one who grants vengeance to me.” The plural form of the noun indicates degree here, suggesting complete vengeance or vindication.
[18:47] 111 tn Heb “he subdues nations beneath me.” On the meaning of the verb דָּבַר (davar, “subdue,” a homonym of דָּבַר, davar, “speak”), see HALOT 209-10 s.v. I דבר. See also Ps 47:3 and 2 Chr 22:10. 2 Sam 22:48 reads “and [is the one who] brings down nations beneath me.”
[18:48] 115 tn Heb “[the one who] delivers me.” 2 Sam 22:49 reads “and [the one who] brings me out.”
[18:48] 116 tn Heb “lifts me up.” In light of the preceding and following references to deliverance, the verb רום probably here refers to being rescued from danger (see Ps 9:13). However, it could mean “exalt, elevate” here, indicating that the
[18:48] 117 tn Heb “from those who rise against me.”
[18:49] 121 sn I will give you thanks before the nations. This probably alludes to the fact that the psalmist will praise the
[18:49] 122 tn Heb “to your name.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his divine characteristics as suggested by his name, in this case “
[18:50] 127 tn Or “the one who.”
[18:50] 128 tn Heb “magnifies the victories of his king.” “His king” refers to the psalmist, the Davidic king whom God has chosen to rule Israel.
[18:50] 129 tn Heb “[the one who] does loyalty.”
[18:50] 130 tn Heb “his anointed [one],” i.e., the psalmist/Davidic king. See Ps 2:2.
[18:50] 131 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
[18:50] 132 sn If David is the author of the psalm (see the superscription), then he here anticipates that God will continue to demonstrate loyalty to his descendants who succeed him. If the author is a later Davidic king, then he views the divine favor he has experienced as the outworking of God’s faithful promises to David his ancestor.
